MONOLOG’S A MARVEL – Stacy Fischer delivers a monolog to remember as Ellen in WHAT’s The Little Dog Laughed.

We often look to the arts – the visual arts, music, poetry, literature, dance or theater – to help make sense of the world we live in. The artist, writer, choreographer, etc. often distills the events that can seem overwhelming when seen and experienced in daily life into vehicles that isolate and illuminate the pieces through drama and humor, color and light, movement and stillness in ways that suddenly make even the most ridiculous ideas or events make sense.

Theater is an especially powerful vehicle that has been used through many centuries to enlighten and engage audiences ranging from the noble to the humble, often to great effect, especially when it comes to political and moral challenges and changes in the status quo. If you are interested in well written, gritty, funny plays that make you think even while you’re laughing out loud, acted and presented by professionals then run, don’t walk, to reserve your tickets for The Little Dog Laughed by Douglas Carter Beane at the Julie Harris Stage of the Wellfleet Harbor Actors Theater.

From the moment you are seated, the elegant yet simple set captures your attention. Why is there a red carpet? Where will it take you? A beautiful, erudite woman appears on stage with a spot light on her. She begins to speak and the magic begins with her. She is our guide and we are her willing followers. We follow her right into the story line and we never leave until the lights go out and the actors take their bows. Together.

There are four actors in this play, two men and two women. It is impossible to pick one out from the crowd. They are all superb and all totally different. They make us laugh, they bring us to tears, they make us cringe and they make us question more than a few things. For instance, it is still policy in Hollywood for straight actors to play gay characters, especially in big name movies. It is this fact that not only drives the plot line but drove the playwright to write the play. His screenplay of his own play was being changed to make the characters straight, not gay. The studio felt this made the play more accessible, more “big box office”-ready. This seems almost impossible to believe and yet when we talked about it later we realized even many gay characters on TV are played by straight people. Hmmmm.

Diane, played by Elizabeth Atkeson, is an agent, an angel, a demon, a manipulator, a go-between, a visionary and a friend to her client, rising star and actor Mitchell, played by Robert Kropf. Atkeson never misses a beat. Her voice is strong and clear and her body is her instrument. We know her intent throughout, not just in her fabulous and expressive facial expressions and voice but through her body language as well. She struts, she rules, she cajoles and she arranges things. Like people.

Mitchell is an actor with a few problems, not the least of which is his sexual identity. He also likes to drink a bit and finds himself face to face with a male prostitute late one night in his hotel room. The prostitute, Alex, played by David Nelson, insists he is not gay, that he just does this for money. Mitchell also insists he is not gay, that he had an experience when he was younger and that he just wants to experiment a bit. Kropf and Nelson make an interesting pair as they begin to fall in love or at least in lust with each other. They sort of stumble about through the minefield of their feelings and their fears and much of their communication is bungled and misunderstood. Both actors do a great job of mixing bravado with a bit of fear as their feelings for each other grow.

There is another obstacle to their love, not just the ambitious plans of agent Diane. Alex has a girlfriend, Ellen, played by the lovely Stacy Fischer. Fischer plays a complex and interesting part that weaves the story together like a singer with perfect pitch singing all the parts of a cantata. She is expressive, intelligent and a joy to watch on stage. Her monolog about a certain relative may be worth the price of admission.

There are many twists and turns to the plot that I don’t want to give away, but I should mention that there is a brief scene of total nudity and sexual innuendo. Those bringing teenagers (this is probably not an appropriate play for young children) should be aware of this. There are so many redeeming elements of this play that make it a great vehicle for frank discussions with teens, especially older ones, that I would even recommend it, but obviously that is a parental choice and decision.

The play won a Tony Award in 2007 for Best Play, which is no surprise given its excellence, but it is a true delight to see such a tight, well written and relevant play outside of the city so quickly here in Off-off-off-off-around-the-bend-and-over-the-canal-from Broadway land. By the way, many theatergoers will also recognize the author as the writer of the screenplay for To Wong Fu, Thanks for Everything Julie Newmar.

Bravo to director Daisy Walker, who has done a superb job as have all the technical and support staff. Once again, WHAT has staged a winner.

The Little Dog Laughed is at Wellfleet Harbor Actors Theater’s Julie Harris Stage on Route 6 through Sept. 5, with shows at 8 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. For tickets, call 508-349-9428 or go to www.what.org.